Alicia Gossman-Steeves: Family members should stick together

Alicia Gossman-Steeves

Thursday

Dec 31, 2009 at 12:01 AMDec 31, 2009 at 6:41 PM

Once in a while it is good for the family to step back and think about issues and events of the past that have shaped us in some way. For one reason, it may help us reflect on good memories that we haven't thought about in a while. For another reason, it helps us gauge our growth and the growth of our children. Good memories and progress give us reason to be thankful.

For Christmas this year, our family received a game called "Let's Chat!" The game is a simple key ring with small note cards on it. The note cards have questions that everyone is supposed to talk about and answer.

The questions, which range from "If you had to save $100 a month in your budget, what would you do?" to "What relative has influenced you the most and why?" make good conversation starters. The purpose of the game, I believe, is to help family members reflect, learn and get to know one another.

I would not like to play this game every night, but once in a while it is good for the family to step back and think about issues and events of the past that have shaped us in some way. For one reason, it may help us reflect on good memories that we haven't thought about in a while. For another reason, it helps us gauge our growth and the growth of our children. Good memories and progress give us reason to be thankful.

This is an important exercise in the church as well because we are family. Church scrapbooks, creative annual reports and fellowship all help us reflect on the past and look ahead toward the future. Reflection helps us remember the good times and the rough times. It shows us how we've grown and where we're going. It shows us how God has brought us through rough times and how there were moments of laughter. Reflection shows us what we have done and how we could have done it better.

Some of us do not like to look at the past because the memories are unpleasant or downright painful. However, in order to move on to a brighter future, we must work through that pain. Working through pain together is what families are all about. The church family becomes extremely important when the physical family fails to provide support for whatever reason.

Is your church a family? Is your family a means of support for one another? These are good questions to look at as we head into 2010. Honest answers to these questions may provide a brighter new year.